PBL Rule of the Week Week 7: Be Respectful - Library

Week 8: Be a Learner - Walkways

Holsworthy Public School High Quality Education, Strong Discipline

Principal: Mark Hoppitt

36 Infantry Parade Phone: 9825 1479 Holsworthy NSW 2173 Fax: 9825 2860

Email < holsworthy-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au> Website: www.holsworthy-p.schools.nsw.gov.au

Wednesday 9 September 2020 Newsletter Term 3 Week 8

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE Awesome Opportunities Continue at Holsworthy Even though we are abiding by COVID restrictions, amazing things are still occurring at Holsworthy Public School. During the last few weeks we have had students involved with public speaking, debating and Tournament of Minds.

• We have had students participate in the school’s Oracy competition as well as the externally run Multicultural Public Speaking Competition.

• Our senior debating teams have had early success in their external debating competitions. • We also have classes where students have been conducting their own debates. • A team of students has been preparing for and participating in the Tournament of Minds (a

problem-solving program for teams of students where collaboration is the key) - our students have done a great job creating a video and then editing this video to be sent off as part of the process.

Well done to the students who have been involved in these wonderful learning opportunities. P&C Meeting and Principal Introduction The P&C have organised a short meeting for Wednesday 16 September from 2pm-2.30pm. As we are unable to meet on the school site, we will join each other using Zoom (see instructions at end of newsletter). We will not follow the normal P&C meeting procedures as this is the first meeting of 2020, the P&C is undergoing a rebuilding phase and most activities are on hold due to COVID restrictions. We are looking forward to re-establishing the P&C as an important part of the school community and want to discuss what this might look like in 2021. This will also be an opportunity for me to briefly speak to the community and present my philosophy and plans for Holsworthy PS. 2021-2024 Strategic Improvement Plan For the last three years the school has been working on the strategic directions established in the 2018-2020 School Plan. The strategic directions were:

• Consistent, evidence-based literacy and numeracy programs - to maintain and enhance a consistent school–wide approach to learning that supports high quality, evidence– based literacy and numeracy programs that are inclusive of all students.

• Quality, innovative teaching practice - to deliver effective, evidence based teaching practices consistently across the whole school targeting student needs in a future focused context.

• A culture of high expectations and community engagement - to foster a whole school culture of continued improvement in teaching, leadership and community engagement.

Each year the school evaluates its progress in achieving the strategic directions within the plan and these evaluations appear in the Annual School Report. The school is currently working on the newly named Strategic Improvement Plan for 2021-2024. This will also have strategic directions but the purpose is to target areas where the school needs to improve. There are common targets across the state where each school has been requested to make improvements - these include NAPLAN results (such as the percentage of students in the top 2 bands), well-being and student attendance. The school staff are currently working on our Strategic Improvement Plan and we will be looking to engage the community in these discussions as this plan is being developed. Student Safety and Kiss and Ride Last week, council employees were outside the school and took photos of cars that were illegally using the designated Kiss and Ride area. I have been told that fines will be issued to parents who allow their children to exit the vehicle in areas that are not designated as Kiss and Ride (such as No Stopping zones). For the safety of all the children, please obey the road rules. Also, it is courteous to drive to the far end of the Kiss and Ride zone so that other cars may pull in behind you. Some cars are stopping as soon as they enter the zone which impacts on the other cars who also want to drop off or collect their child/ren. In the afternoon is it important that your child is looking for your car approaching and then be able to enter the vehicle and fasten their seat belt as quickly as possible. We have a lot of parents using this area and the safety of all students is paramount. Mark Hoppitt Principal Multicultural Perspectives Public Speaking

Students in year 3-6 were invited to prepare and present a speech for the Multicultural Perspectives Public Speaking competition. All students who entered the competition presented their speeches to a high standard. Congratulations to Grace Chang 3/4E and Annika Shankar 3/4E who won the Stage 2 competition, and Shekinah Pillay 5/6N and Afaf Khan 5/6N who won the Stage 3 competition. These students will progress to represent Holsworthy Public School at the local finals of the competition. Their speeches have been recorded and uploaded for adjudication and we expect to receive results later this term. We wish them the best of luck.

SCRIPTURE NEWS Scripture has recommenced this week. The students did a wonderful job at remembering their scripture group and location. A big thank you to the scripture volunteers for being so understanding during our school maintenance.

LIFE EDUCATION Healthy Harold will be visiting Holsworthy Public School in Term 4 from Thursday 15th October to Thursday 29 October 2020. There will be no cost this year.

Notes will go home Monday Week 9. Student will need to return their permission note to be able to participate.

Ms Flay Co-ordinator

Premier’s Debating Challenge On Friday of Week 6 (28/08/20), The Holsworthy Titans, competed in the 3rd round of the Premier’s Debating Challenge. This round was against the Newbridge Heights Talkalots. The topic for this debate was that ‘All primary schools should start the day with a 30 minute exercise class’. The Titans were on the negative team, meaning that they were debating against the topic. Our team was strong and co-operative with 1st speaker- Adhruth Anand, 2nd speaker- Annissa Tuy, 3rd speaker Harsha Sheoran and Team advisor- Jasia Rahman. The team’s chairperson, and backup debater, was Aleena Tomy. This debate was a very close one. However, The Titans managed to take the win for this round. We would like to congratulate all the debaters of this team for an exceptional victory. On Tuesday 1st September, both the Titans and the Rookies competed in debates. The Rookies’ topic was that ‘All primary school students should have pets’ and they were against the topic. Their team included, 1st Speaker- Jade Vickers, 2nd Speaker- Shekinah Pillay, 3rd Speaker- Grace Chacko and Team Advisor- Meenakshi Punnadi. It was close but luckily the Rookies won this debate against Milperra. In addition to this, the Titans also debated against Hammondville that same day. Their topic was that ‘All primary school students should be allowed to have mobile phones’. 1st Speaker was Adhruth Anand, 2nd Speaker- Jasia Rahman, 3rd Speaker- Harsha Sheoran and Team Advisor- Aleena Tomy. This team debated very well and their powerful and valid rebuttals gave them a boost and enabled them to win this debate. This means that the Rookies still have two debates to go and the Titans have their final one left. We wish them the best of luck on these debates hopefully earning them a place in the next level of debating. ~ Harsha Sheoran and Aleena Tomy ~

2020 INTERNATIONAL COMPETITIONS AND ASSESSMENTS FOR SCHOOLS (ICAS)

HOW TO ACCESS ONLINE REPORTS:

1. Visit ICAS website homepage at unswglobal.unsw.edu.au/educational-assessments

2. At the top of the homepage, click on the Results and Reports Portal.

3. Click on Sign in under Student Results tab half way down the page

4. At the Student Result Login, enter your (student’s) ten digit TAP-ID followed by your (student’s) four digit PIN and then click Sign in. Your child’s TAP-ID and PIN is printed on the back page of their ICAS certificate, beneath the academic achievement record. You will also find your child’s TAP-ID number and four digit PIN towards the bottom of any of the student letters you have previously received from ICAS. If you do not have access to the TAP-ID number or PIN, your school will be able to provide them to you.

KINDERGARTEN NEWS Kindergarten have been busy writing and participating in maths games and problems. This week we are looking at Volume and Capacity and how we can use every day and mathematical language to describe containers that are empty, full and half full. KM and KR worked together in the sand pits to fill containers and talk about this concept with each other and their teachers. During writing groups, we have been looking at consistently including adjectives in our writing and using conjunctions to create compound sentences.

YEAR ONE SNAPSHOT OF LEARNING

Division, Division, Division! Year 1 have been learning how to share equally this week in Maths groups. Students have been using hands on materials, such as pencils and counters, to share into equal groups. Year 1 also learnt that not all numbers can be shared equally and can therefore leave a remainder.

YEAR 2

LIBRARY NEWS As renovations are now complete, the library is resuming our normal activities. Classes will now be able to have lessons as well as borrowing on their library days. The library will also be open again during first half of lunch each day.

Due to the upheavals we have an unusually large number of overdue books to be returned. Please check with your students to see if they need to find missing books.

We are still maintaining our hygiene procedures to be as Covid safe as possible. We ask that you also assist with this by ensuring that your students bring a library bag in which to carry their chosen books.

Book Week and our Book Fair are still scheduled for Week 2 of next term. We will have more details about these and other events in the next newsletter.

The Premier’s Reading Challenge has now ended. Congratulations to all the students who completed the challenge this year. Certificates will be received late in term 4. All students in Kindergarten, Year 1 and Year 2 will receive a certificate. We also have some students in Years 3, 4 and 6 who finished. However, the most successful grade is Year 5. Congratulations to the following students in Year 5:

Snapshot of Stage 2

Mathematical Problem Solving skills

Students are learning to:

1. pose problems 2. solve a variety of problems using problem-solving strategies, including:

• trial and error • drawing a diagram • working backwards • looking for patterns • ask questions

Students need to be able express their ideas and understanding by communicating and providing reasons for their thinking. Students are required to be able to use words to describe mathematical ideas and apply their knowledge in problem solving situations.

The mathematical language required is modelled by the teacher and students are provided with opportunities to talk through their thinking. Students are given experiences in both solving problems and posing their own problems.

Newman’s prompts are an explicitly taught process for students to follow when solving problems. This practice is consistent across the school and has led to great improvement and success in solving mathematical problems across the stage.

1. Read the question

(Students are asked to underline the key words and numbers.)

2. What is the question asking you to do?

(Students are asked to restate the problem in their own words.)

3. How are you going to find the answer?

(Selecting a strategy such as drawing a diagram or writing a number sentence.)

4. Do the working out

5. Write the answer to the question and check your working out.

(Checking may involve using an inverse operation such as 45+13=58 could be checked by subtracting 45 from 58.)

Year 5 History This term during History lessons, Year 5 and 5/6N students have been investigating the origins of the gold rush in Australia. Students began the unit by reinforcing their understanding of the reasons for British settlement in 1788 and the impact of this on both Indigenous Australians and on the environment. From there, students researched Australian colonies post 1788 and the life of different groups of individuals within those colonies. Students are currently enjoying their lessons as they collaborate with their classmates to investigate the types of gold found during the gold rush, the origins of the gold rush in Australia and its profound impact on Australian society.

Year 6 STEM and Robotics

This term, year 6 students have been participating in STEM and robotics lessons during a collaborative learning hour among the grade. Students are applying the Thinking Caps design process to support them to develop a solution to a problem posed and apply critical and creative thinking skills. One of the STEM challenges has been for students to design a capsule for an egg so that it can be dropped from a height without breaking. In robotics, students have been learning how to use block coding to program their Sphero robot to complete a challenge. All of these activities involve students communicating with their group members, ensuring that they articulate their ideas, listen actively to their peers and build on or debate the ideas of their group.

DIARY 2020 HPS Diary Term 3 Monday 20 July – Friday 25 September

WEEK 8

September 7

September 8

September 9

September 10

September 11 Mindfulness

WEEK 9

September 14 Oracy Competition

Stage Finals

September 15

September 16

September 17

September 18 Mindfulness

WEEK 10

September 21

Check-in Assessment Yr 3

September 22

September 23

September 24

September 25 Mindfulness

Last day term 3

TERM Three

Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri

Spring Holidays - Monday 28 September to Friday 9 October 2020

SCHOOL PHOTO DAY

Tuesday 20 October Today your child will bring home a personalised envelope for school photo day.

If you do not receive a personalised envelope your child will be given a blank envelope instead.

Please read photo envelopes for instructions regarding payment methods.

EACH STUDENT MUST HAND IN THEIR OWN COMPLETED ENVELOPE ON THE PHOTO DAY.

Any parents who have already paid online and wish to make changes to their order need to call The School Photographer office on 9674 9824.

SIBLING PHOTOS: a separate Siblings Envelope will need to be completed and are available on request at the School Office (for students to collect).

Please do not place your sibling envelope inside the individual envelope.

Please note: Online payments for sibling orders will close at 3:00pm on Monday 19 October. Prior to 9:30am on photo day you can still collect and pay via cash only using a Sibling Envelope from the school office. All PAYMENTS ARE MADE TO THE SCHOOL PHOTOGRAPHER AND NOT TO THE SCHOOL.

THE SCHOOL PHOTOGRAPHER PAYMENT OPTIONS

• For parents wishing to pay after photo day go to www.theschoolphotographer.com.au and select the “Click here for Online Payments” button, to make a payment online.

• Parents can call The School Photographer office on 9674 9824 and pay by credit card over the phone. (Note: There is a processing fee of $5 for all phone order payments.

Please note if paying online or by credit card students still need to bring their envelope on the day of photography.

NO ENVELOPES ARE TO BE BROUGHT TO SCHOOL BEFORE PHOTO DAY ON TUESDAY 20 October.

Dress: Full school uniform including white socks and black shoes.

1. CASH Please enclose correct money as NO CHANGE will be given. 2. ONLINE CREDIT CARD PAYMENT Simply visit website

https://www.theschoolphotographer.com.au and go to ‘order 2020 photos’. Enter the code provided on

the personalised envelope or X1433PC41H (generic school code) and follow the prompts – Please write your receipt number in the space provided (handling fee applies).

NO CHEQUES or MONEY ORDERS Due to a change in bank policy Cheques are no longer accepted.

COMBINED PAYMENTS If combining payments for more than one child please complete the “combined payments’ box

LATE ORDERS Any orders placed after school photographs have been delivered to the school will incur a fee.

Guide: P&C Meeting on Zoom

Before the Zoom meeting • Make sure you have a Zoom account. To sign up for Zoom, see https://zoom.us/freesignup/. • Make sure the device you are using has audio and microphone. If you wish, you can use a headset.

An appropriate device for Zoom can be a laptop/computer, smartphone or tablet such as an iPad. If you are using a smartphone or tablet, download the Zoom app.

To attend the meeting • Go to zoom.us and sign in, or open the Zoom app on your or tablet. • Go to Join a meeting. • Enter the Meeting ID (617 9747 1874)

• Enter your own name and your child/ren’s name/s

• You will be asked to enter the room’s password. The password 945211. • You will enter the waiting room.

• Please enable your camera but mute your microphone unless speaking,

Help us do better The Tell Them From Me parent survey is your chance to let us

know how we are going.

Complete the survey

Your results will help us

http://nsw.tellthemfromme.com/3hptt

Student Survey (Term 3, 2020)

In Term 3 Week 8 or 9, students in Years 4, 5 and 6 will take part in the Tell Them From Me student survey. The survey measures factors that are known to affect academic achievement and other student outcomes. The focus of the NSW-wide survey is on student wellbeing, engagement and effective teaching practices.

You may remember that our students also participated in a Tell Them From Me student survey in Term 1 this year. Asking students to complete the survey twice in one year allows us to identify trends in student responses as well as track engagement and motivation across the school year.

The survey is a great opportunity for our students to provide us with valuable and quick feedback on what they think about school life, how engaged they are with school and the different ways that teachers interact with them. More than 6,300 schools in Australia and around the world have used Tell Them From Me to survey 5.4 million students. Capturing the voices of our students will help improve how we do things at our school.

More information about the survey is available at: http://surveys.cese.nsw.gov.au

I want to assure you that the survey is confidential. The survey is conducted online and will typically take less than 30 minutes to complete. It will be administered during school hours between 7 September (Week 8) and 18 September (Week 9). Participating in the survey is entirely voluntary.

If you do not want your child to take part in the survey, please complete the form sent home and return it to the school by Friday 4 September 2020.

More information about the survey and the research is available in English on the CESE website: http://surveys.cese.nsw.gov.au/information-for-parents

To register, please click on the link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SGHS_OPEN_DAY_2020 Or go to our school website: https://sydneygirl-h.schools.nsw.gov.au/

Please contact school office 9331 2336 for more information.